This weeping willow was found in the wild in at Öresund, southern Sweden, with long narrow leaves and a beautiful weeping habit from which the common name derives. The reddish to yellowish colour of the branches intensifies during the winter, making it showy even after leaf fall.
The yellow of the branches resembles that of the well-know weeping variety ’Chrysocoma’, from which ‘Öresund’ is thought to have originated. ‘Öresund’ is a female tree, however, and is considered hardier than its (probable) parent.
This variety has been tried in Finland as early as the 1950s at Mustila, but has not gained much of a foothold here. It seems to be hardy in southern parts but the shoots and leaves are blackened by a fungus disease which reduces their attractiveness and makes them susceptible to other problems. This seems to be the fate of the tree planted by the pool below Atsalearinne (Azalea Slope) in 2004, which has not grown well.